Refrigerator

ABSTRACT

A method to control a refrigerator includes changing a transparent display assembly to be in a first or transparent state allowing an inner space of the refrigerator to be visible through the transparent assembly, a second or opaque state so as to conceal the inner space, and a third or a display state to display information on a display of the transparent assembly. The transparent display assembly includes a front panel, a rear panel, an outer spacer configured to maintain a first distance between the front panel and the rear panel, a display provided on a rear surface of the front panel, a light guide plate spaced apart from the display, and a first spacer configured to support the light guide plate and to maintain a second distance between the display and the light guide plate.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.17/162,953, filed Jan. 29, 2021, which is a Divisional of U.S.application Ser. No. 16/547,826, filed Aug. 22, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No.10,941,982, which is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/838,664, filed Dec. 12, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,436,504, whichclaims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 and 35 U.S.C. 365 to Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2016-0169005, filed Dec. 12, 2016, which are herebyincorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to a refrigerator.

In general, refrigerators are home appliances for storing foods at a lowtemperature in a storage space that is covered by a door. For this,refrigerators cool the inside of the storage space by using cool airgenerated by being heat-exchanged with a refrigerant circulated througha refrigeration cycle to store foods in an optimum state.

In recent years, refrigerators tend to increase in size more and more,and multi-functions are applied to refrigerators as dietary life changesand high-quality is pursued, and accordingly, refrigerators of variousstructures for user convenience and efficient use of an internal spaceare being brought to the market.

A storage space of such a refrigerator may be opened and closed by adoor. Also, refrigerators may be classified into various types accordingto an arranged configuration of the storage space and a structure of thedoor for opening and closing the storage space.

Generally, the refrigerator has a limitation that foods stored thereinare not confirmed unless the door is not opened. That is, the door hasto be opened to confirm that a desired food is stored in therefrigerator or in a separate storage space provided in the door. Inaddition, if the stored position of the food is not known precisely, anopened time of the door may increase, or the number of times for openingthe door increases. In this case, there is a limitation that unnecessaryleakage of cool air occurs.

In recent years, to solve such a limitation, a refrigerator has beendeveloped while allows a portion of a door thereof to be transparent orallows the inside thereof to be seen from the outside.

SUMMARY

Embodiments provide a refrigerator in which at least a portion of arefrigerator door is selectively transparent by user's manipulation toallow the user to see the inside of the refrigerator even though therefrigerator door is closed, and simultaneously, to selectively output ascreen.

Embodiments also provide a refrigerator in which a see-through partconstituting a portion of a door is capable of being transparent oropaque or outputting a screen according to selective turn-on/off of adoor light or a display light.

Embodiments also provide a refrigerator in which a PCB and a cableconnected to the PCB are disposed in a door, which is capable of seeingthrough the inside of the refrigerator by a transparent displayassembly, without being exposed through the transparent display.

Embodiments also provide a refrigerator which is capable of improvinginsulation performance of a transparent display assembly through whichthe inside of a door is seen.

Embodiments also provide a refrigerator that is capable of preventingpower consumption from increasing by a loss of cool air through a door.

Embodiments also provide a refrigerator which is capable of satisfyinginsulation performance while maintaining a thickness of a door of whichat least a portion is transparent.

Embodiments also provide a structure of a door into which a gas forinsulation is capable of being injected and which includes a transparentdisplay assembly.

In one embodiment, a refrigerator includes: a cabinet defining a storagespace; a door opening and closing the cabinet; and a transparent displayassembly which covers an opening of the door and through which an innerspace of the refrigerator is seen, wherein the transparent displayassembly includes: a front panel defining at least a portion of a frontsurface of the door; a rear panel defining at least a portion of a rearsurface of the door; an outer spacer maintaining a distance between thefront panel and the rear panel and disposed along circumferences of thefront panel and the rear panel to define a sealed space therein; adisplay disposed on a rear surface of the front panel in the sealedspace; a light guide plate spaced apart from the display to brighten upthe display; and a first spacer supporting the light guide plate in thesealed space and maintaining a distance between the display and thelight guide plate, wherein an inert gas is injected between the frontpanel and the light guide plate through an injection hole of the outerspacer to provide an insulation layer.

A source board passing between the front panel and the first spacer toextend to the outside of the first spacer may be disposed on one end ofthe display.

The source board may be disposed in a space between the first spacer andthe outer spacer.

The source board may be disposed perpendicular to the front panel.

A display cable connecting the source board to a T-CON board disposedoutside the transparent display assembly may pass between the outerspacer and the front panel.

A touch sensor for user's touch manipulation of the front panel may bedisposed on the rear surface of the front panel, and the touch sensormay be connected to a PCB disposed outside the transparent displayassembly by a touch cable.

A display light emitting light to an end of the light guide plate may bedisposed on inner upper ends facing each other of the outer spacer, anda display light cable connected to a PCB disposed outside thetransparent display assembly may pass between the outer spacer and therear panel.

The cable may have a flexible film shape.

The first spacer may support both left and right ends of the light guideplate, and a light guide plate support part protruding to support upperand lower ends of the light guide plate may be disposed on the outerspacer.

A sealant may be applied to an outer surface of the outer spacer, andthe injection hole may be covered by the sealant.

The inner space of the outer spacer may communicate with a space betweenthe front panel and the light guide plate.

A second spacer disposed along a circumference of the light guide plateand coming into contact with the rear panel to define a closed spacebetween the light guide plate and the rear panel may be provided, and aninjection hole may be further provided in the second spacer to allow theinert gas injected through the outer spacer to be introduced and therebyto provide a second insulation layer between the light guide plate andthe rear panel.

The injection defined in the outer spacer and the injection hole definedin the second spacer may be provided on the same extension line.

The refrigerator may further include: an insulation panel disposedbetween the light guide plate and the rear panel; a third spacerdisposed along a circumference of the insulation panel and coming intocontact with the light guide plate to define a closed space between thelight guide plate and the insulation panel; and a fourth spacer disposedalong the circumference of the insulation panel and coming into contactwith the rear panel to define a closed space between the insulationpanel and the rear panel.

The inert gas may be injected into the closed spaces defined by thethird spacer and the fourth spacer to provide a third insulation layerand a fourth insulation layer, respectively.

The transparent display assembly may include: a module in which thedisplay, the first spacer, and the outer spacer are mounted on the frontpanel; and a module in which the fourth spacer, the insulation panel,the third spacer, and the light guide plate are mounted on the rearpanel to provide the third insulation layer and the fourth insulationlayer, wherein the module of the font panel and the module of the rearpanel may be coupled to each other.

An injection hole may be further defined in each of the third spacer andthe fourth spacer, and the inert gas injected through the outer spacermay be introduced to provide a third insulation layer between the lightguide plate and the insulation panel and a fourth insulation layerbetween the insulation panel and the rear panel.

Each of the third spacer and the fourth spacer may include: a hollowtube member having both opened ends to define upper/lower and left/rightends thereof; a corner connection member connecting both ends of thetube member, which are adjacent to cross each other, wherein aconnection member injection hole communicating the sealed space of theouter spacer and the closed spaces of the third and fourth spacers sothat the inert gas is introduced may be further defined in the cornermember.

A second spacer disposed along a circumference of the light guide plateand coming into contact with the rear panel to define a closed spacebetween the light guide plate and the rear panel may be provided,wherein the second spacer may include: a hollow tube member having bothopened end to define upper/lower and left/right ends thereof; and acorner connection member connecting both ends of the tube member, whichare adjacent to cross each other, wherein a connection member injectionhole communicating the sealed space of the outer spacer and the closedspace of the second spacer so that the inert gas is introduced may befurther defined in the corner member.

A moisture absorbent may be filled in the tube member, and a pluralityof punched holes communicating with the closed space may be defined inan inner surface of the second spacer.

The details of one or more embodiments are set forth in the accompanyingdrawings and the description below. Other features will be apparent fromthe description and drawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator according to a firstembodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the refrigerator.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the refrigerator with a sub door opened.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the refrigerator with a main dooropened.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the sub door when viewed from a frontside.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the sub door when viewed from a rearside.

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the sub door.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a transparent display assembly accordingto the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view of the transparent displayassembly.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 10-10′ of FIG. 8.

FIG. 11 is a partial perspective view illustrating a state in which aPCB is disposed on an upper portion of the transparent display assembly.

FIG. 12 is a partial perspective view illustrating a structure in whicha display cable is disposed on the transparent display assembly.

FIG. 13 is a partial perspective view illustrating a structure in whicha display light is disposed on the transparent display assembly.

FIG. 14 is a partial cutaway perspective view of the transparent displayassembly.

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 15-15′ of FIG. 8.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 16-16′ of FIG. 8.

FIG. 17 is a rear view illustrating a state in which a rear panel of thetransparent display assembly is removed.

FIG. 18 is a view illustrating a state in which a gas is injected intothe transparent display assembly.

FIG. 19 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the main door and thesub door.

FIG. 20 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the main door and thesub door.

FIG. 21 is a view illustrating a state in which the inside of therefrigerator is seen through the transparent display assembly.

FIG. 22 is a view illustrating a state in which a screen is outputtedthrough the transparent display assembly.

FIG. 23 is an exploded perspective view of a transparent displayassembly according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 24 is a transverse partial cutaway perspective view of thetransparent display assembly.

FIG. 25 is a longitudinal partial cutaway perspective view of thetransparent display assembly.

FIGS. 26A and 26B are views illustrating a process of forming aninsulation layer of the transparent display assembly.

FIG. 27 is a view illustrating a process of forming an insulation layerof a transparent display assembly according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a perspective view of a door according to a fourthembodiment.

FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 29-29′ of FIG. 28.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of the presentdisclosure, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. The invention may, however, be embodied in many differentforms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodimentsset forth herein; rather, that alternate embodiments included in otherretrogressive inventions or falling within the spirit and scope of thepresent disclosure will fully convey the concept of the invention tothose skilled in the art.

FIG. 1 is a front view of a refrigerator according to a firstembodiment. Also, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the refrigerator.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a refrigerator 1 according to a firstembodiment includes a cabinet 10 defining a storage space and a doorthat opens or closes the storage space. Here, an outer appearance of therefrigerator 1 may be defined by the cabinet 10 and the door.

The inside of the cabinet 10 is partitioned into upper and lowerportions by a barrier (see FIG. 11). A refrigerating compartment 12 maybe defined in the upper portion of the cabinet 10, and a freezingcompartment 13 may be defined in the lower portion of the cabinet 10.

Also, a control unit 14 for controlling an overall operation of therefrigerator 1 may be disposed on a top surface of the cabinet 10. Thecontrol unit 14 may be configured to control a cooling operation of therefrigerator as well as electric components for selective see-throughand screen output of a see-through part 21.

The door may include a refrigerating compartment door and a freezingcompartment door 30. The refrigerating compartment door 20 may be openedand closed by rotating an opened front surface of the refrigeratingcompartment 12, and the freezing compartment door 30 may be switched byrotating an opened front surface of the freezing compartment 13.

Also, the refrigerating compartment door 20 may be provided in a pair ofleft and right doors. Thus, the refrigerating compartment 12 is coveredby the pair of doors. The freezing compartment door 30 may be providedin a pair of left and right doors. Thus, the freezing compartment 13 maybe opened and closed by the pair of doors. Alternatively, the freezingcompartment door 30 may be withdrawable in a draw type as necessary andprovided as one or more doors.

Although a refrigerator in which, a French type door in which a pair ofdoors rotate to open and close one space is applied to a bottom freezertype refrigerator in which the freezing compartment 13 is provided at alower portion, is described as an example in this embodiment, thepresent disclosure may be applied to all types of refrigeratorsincluding door without being limited to shapes of the refrigerators.

Also, recessed handle grooves 201 and 301 may be provided in a lower endof the refrigerating compartment door 20 and an upper end of thefreezing compartment door 30. A user may insert a his/her hand into thehandle groove 201 or 301 to open and close the refrigerating compartmentdoor 20 or the freezing compartment door 30.

At least one door may be provided so that the inside of the refrigeratoris seen through the door. A see-through part 21 that is an area, throughwhich the storage space in the rear surface of the door and/or theinside of the refrigerator are seen, may be provided in therefrigerating compartment door 20. The see-through part 21 mayconstitute at least a portion of a front surface of the refrigeratingcompartment door 20. The see-through part 21 may be selectivelytransparent or opaque according to user's manipulation. Thus, foodsaccommodated in the refrigerator may be accurately identified throughthe see-through part 21.

Also, although the structure in which the see-through part 21 isprovided in the refrigerating compartment door 20 is described as anexample in this embodiment, the see-through part 21 may be provided indifferent types of refrigerator doors such as the freezing compartmentdoor 30 according to a structure and configuration of the refrigerator.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the refrigerator with a sub door opened.Also, FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the refrigerator with a main dooropened.

As illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, the refrigerating compartment door 20,which is disposed at the right side (when viewed in FIG. 3), of the pairof refrigerating compartment doors 20 may be doubly opened and closed.In detail, the refrigerating compartment door 20, which is disposed atthe right side, may include a main door 40 that opening and closing therefrigerating compartment 12 and a sub door 50 rotatably disposed on themain door 40 to open and close an opening defined in the main door 40.

The main door 40 may have the same size as that of the refrigeratingcompartment door 20, which is disposed at the left side (when viewed inFIG. 1), of the pair of refrigerating compartment doors 20. The maindoor 40 may be rotatably mounted on the cabinet 10 by an upper hinge 401and a lower hinge 402 to open at least a portion of the refrigeratingcompartment door 20.

Also, an opening 41 that is opened with a predetermined size is definedin the main door 40. A door basket 431 may be mounted on the rearsurface of the main door 40 as well as the inside of the opening 41.Here, the opening 41 may have a size that occupies most of the frontsurface of the main door 40 except for a portion of a circumference ofthe main door 40.

Also, a main gasket 45 may be disposed on a circumference of the rearsurface of the main door 40 to prevent cool air within an internal spaceof the cabinet 10 from leaking when the main door 40 is opened.

The sub door 50 may be rotatably mounted on the front surface of themain door 40 to open and close the opening 41. Thus, the sub door 50 maybe opened to expose the opening 41.

The sub door 50 may have the same size as the main door 40 to cover theentire front surface of the main door 40. Also, when the sub door 50 isclosed, the main door 40 and the sub door 50 may be coupled to eachother to provide the same size and configuration as those of the leftrefrigerating compartment door 20. Also, a sub gasket 503 may bedisposed on the rear surface of the sub door 50 to seal a gap betweenthe main door 40 and the sub door 50.

A transparent display assembly 60 that selectively sees the inside andoutputs a screen may be disposed at a center of the sub door 50. Thus,even though the sub door 50 is closed, the inside of the opening 41 maybe selectively seen, and also an image inside the opening 41 may beoutputted. The see-through part 21 may be a portion of the sub door 50,through which the inside of the refrigerator 1 is seen. However, thesee-through part 21 may not necessarily match the entirety of thetransparent display assembly 60.

The transparent display assembly 60 may be configured to be selectivelytransparent or opaque according to user's manipulation. Thus, only whenthe user desires, the transparent display assembly 60 may be transparentso that the inside of the refrigerator 1 is visualized, otherwise, bemaintained in the opaque state. Also, the transparent display assembly60 may output a screen in the transparent or opaque state.

A sub upper hinge 501 and a sub lower hinge 502 may be respectivelyprovided on upper and lower ends of the sub door 50 so that the sub door50 is rotatably mounted on the front surface of the main door 40. Also,an opening device 59 may be provided on the sub door 50. A locking unit42 may be provided on the main door 40 to correspond to the openingdevice 59. Thus, the sub door 50 may be maintained in the closed stateby the coupling between the opening device 59 and the locking unit 42.When the coupling between the opening device 59 and the locking unit 42is released by manipulation of the opening device 59, the sub door 50may be opened with respect to the main door 40.

Also, a damping device 504 (see FIG. 6) may be provided on a lower endof the sub door 50. The damping device 504 may be disposed on edges ofthe lower end and lateral end of the sub door 50, which are adjacent tothe sub lower hinge 502, so that an impact is damped when the sub door50 having a relatively heavy weight by the transparent display assembly60 is closed.

An accommodation case 43 may be provided in the rear surface of the maindoor 40. A plurality of door baskets 431 may be disposed on theaccommodation case 43, and a case door 432 may be provided on theaccommodation case 43.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the sub door when viewed from a frontside. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the sub door when viewed from arear side. Also, FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the sub door.

As illustrated in the drawings, the sub door 50 may include an outerplate 51 defining an outer appearance of the sub door 50, a door liner56 mounted to be spaced apart from the outer plate 51, the transparentdisplay assembly 60 mounted on an opening of the outer plate 51 and thedoor liner 56, and upper and lower cap decos 54 and 55 defining the topand bottom surfaces of the sub door 50. The above-described constituentsmay be coupled to define the whole outer appearance of the sub door 50.

The outer plate 51 may constitute an outer appearance of the frontsurface of the sub door 50 and a portion of a circumferential surface ofthe sub door 50 and be made of a stainless steel material. The outerplate 51 may constitute a portion of the outer appearance of the subdoor 50 as well as the front surface of the sub door 50. Also, the outerplate 51 may be made of the same material of the front surface of eachof the refrigerating compartment door 20 and the freezing compartmentdoor 30. Various surface treatments such as coating or film attachmentso as to realize anti-fingerprint coating, hair lines, colors, orpatterns may be performed on the front surface of the outer plate 51.

The outer plate 51 may include a front part 512 defining the outerappearance of the front surface and a side part 513 defining an outerappearance of the side surface that is exposed to the outside. Also, aplate opening 511 may be defined at a center of the front part 512.Here, the plate opening 511 may be covered by the transparent displayassembly 60. Also, since the inside of the refrigerator 1 is seenthrough the transparent display assembly 60 covering the plate opening511, the inside of the plate opening 511 is called the see-through part21.

The front part 512 may have a curvature that gradually decreases outwardfrom a central side of the refrigerator 1 as a whole. The front part 512may be rounded to correspond to the front surface of the refrigeratingcompartment door 20, which is adjacent to the front part 512. Thus, theouter appearance of the front surface of the refrigerator 1 may bethree-dimensionally viewed as a whole.

Also, an opening bent part 514 that is bent backward may be disposed ona circumferential surface of the plate opening 511. The opening bentpart 514 may be disposed along a circumference of the plate opening 511and extend by a predetermined length so as to be inserted into and fixedto an inner frame 52 that will be described below. Thus, the plateopening 511 may be defined by the opening bent part 514.

The side part 513 that is bent backward may be disposed on each of bothends of the front part 512. The side part 513 may define an outerappearance of the side surface of the sub door 50. Also, an end of theside part 513 may also be bent inward to be coupled to the door liner56.

Upper and lower ends of the outer plate 51 may also be bent to becoupled to the upper cap deco 54 and the lower cap deco 55. Thus, theouter plate 51 may define the outer appearance of the sub door 50 bybeing coupled to the door liner 56 and the upper and lower cap decos 54and 55.

The door liner 56 defines the rear surface of the sub door 50 and has adoor liner opening 561 in the area on which the transparent displayassembly 60 is disposed. Also, a sub gasket 503 for sealing a gapbetween the sub door 50 and the main door 40 may be mounted on the rearsurface of the door liner 56.

Also, a door light 57 may be provided on each of both sides of the doorliner opening 561. The door light 57 may illuminate the rear surface ofthe sub door 50 and a rear side of the transparent display assembly 60.

Thus, the door light 57 may illuminate an inner space of theaccommodation case 43, and simultaneously, serve as an auxiliarybacklight function of the transparent display assembly 60 to moreclearly output a screen of the transparent display assembly 60. When thedoor light 57 is turned on, the inside of the accommodation case 43 maybe brightened up, and thus, the inside of the refrigerator 1 may be morebrightened up than the outside of the refrigerator 1 so that the insideof the refrigerator 1 may be visualized through the transparent displayassembly 60.

The door light 57 may be disposed on both sides of the transparentdisplay assembly 60 in directions facing each other. The mountedposition of the door light 57 may variously vary as long as the doorlight 57 has sufficient brightness at the rear side of the sub door.

Also, the opening device 59 may be mounted on the door liner 56. Theopening device 59 may include a manipulation member 591 exposed to thelower end of the sub door 50, a load 592 extending from the manipulationmember 591, and a locking member 593 protruding from the rear surface ofthe door liner 56. The user may manipulate the manipulation member 591to allow the load 592 to move the locking member 593 so that the subdoor 50 is selectively restricted by the main door 40 and also tomanipulate the opening and closing of the sub door 50.

The upper cap deco 54 may define a top surface of the sub door 50 and becoupled to upper ends of the outer plate 51 and the door liner 56. Also,a sub upper hinge mounting part 541 may be disposed on one end of theupper cap deco 54, and a hinge hole 541 a into which a hinge shaft ofthe upper hinge 401 is inserted may be defined in the sub upper hingemounting part 541. A structure of the upper cap deco 54 will bedescribed below in more detail.

The lower cap deco 55 may define a bottom surface of the sub door 50 andbe coupled to lower ends of the outer plate 51 and the door liner 56.

The transparent display assembly 60 may be disposed between the outerplate 51 and the door liner 56. Also, the transparent display assembly60 may be configured to cover the plate opening 511 and the door lineropening 561. Also, the transparent display assembly 60 may beselectively manipulated to one state of transparent, translucent,opaque, and screen output states by the user.

Thus, the user may selectively see through the inner space of the subdoor 50 through the transparent display assembly 60 and see the screenoutputted through the transparent display assembly 60.

The inner frame 52 for supporting the transparent display assembly 60 ismounted on a circumference of the plate opening 511 of the outer plate51. The transparent display assembly 60 may be fixed and mounted on theouter plate 51 by the inner frame 52. Particularly, a front surface ofthe outer plate 51 and the front surface of the transparent displayassembly 60 may be disposed on the same extension line so that the frontsurface of the sub door 50 has a sense of unity.

A frame opening 521 is defined at a center of the inner frame 52. Theframe opening 521 has a size somewhat less than that of the plateopening 511 and has a structure in which the transparent displayassembly 60 is seated thereon. Also, the frame opening 521 may have asize less than that of the front panel 61 and greater than that of therear panel 65. Thus, when the transparent display assembly 60 ismounted, the rear panel 65 may successively pass through the plateopening 511 and the frame opening 521 and then be seated on the doorliner 56. The front and rear panels 61 and 65 may alternatively bereferred to as first and second panels.

Also, the inner frame 52 may have a coupling structure with the outerplate 51. Here, the outer plate 51 and an end of the transparent displayassembly 60 may be mounted on the inner frame 52 in a state in which theouter plate 51 and the end of the transparent display assembly 60 areclosely attached to each other.

Thus, in the transparent display assembly 60 is mounted, the inner frame52 may support a rear surface of the plate opening 511 of the outerplate 51 and a rear surface of the circumference of the transparentdisplay assembly 60 at the same time. Also, in the state in which thetransparent display assembly 60 is mounted, the front surface of theouter plate 51 and the front surface of the transparent display assembly60 may be disposed on the same plane without being stepped with respectto each other.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the transparent display assemblyaccording to the first embodiment. Also, FIG. 9 is an explodedperspective view of the transparent display assembly. Also, FIG. 10 is across-sectional view taken along line 10-10′ of FIG. 8.

As illustrated in the drawings, the transparent display assembly 60 mayhave a size that is enough to cover the plate opening 511 and the linearopening 561 inside the sub door 50. Also, the see-through part 21 may beprovided in the transparent display assembly 60 so that the inner spaceof the refrigerator is selectively seen, and a screen is outputted.

In more detail with respect to the transparent display assembly 60, thetransparent display assembly 60 may have an outer appearance that isdefined by the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65, which define thefront and rear surfaces of the transparent display assembly 60, and theouter spacer 67 connecting the front panel 61 to the rear panel 65.

Also, a display 62 and a light guide plate 64 may be disposed betweenthe front panel 61 and the rear panel 65. In addition, a first spacer orfirst inner spacer 63 for supporting the display 62 and the light guideplate 64 may be further provided, and a display light 68 for emittinglight to the light guide plate 64 may be provided.

In more detail, the front panel 61 may be made of a transparent glassmaterial that defines an outer appearance of the front surface of thetransparent display assembly 60. The front panel 61 may be made of adifferent material through which the inside of the front panel 61 isseen, and a touch input is enabled.

In detail, the front panel 61 may be made of a material such astransparent blue glass so that the inside thereof is seen, and the touchsensor 612 may be attached to the front panel 61 to input manipulationfor driving the display 62. Thus, the user may touch-manipulate thesurface of the front panel 61, and the touch sensor 612 may recognizethe touch manipulation to generate a signal for the operation of thedisplay 62 or the refrigerator 1.

Accordingly, the front panel 61 may perform a function for inputting anoperation of the display 62 or the refrigerator in addition to thesee-through function. An insulation coating layer 652 that will bedescribed below is not provided on the surface of the front panel 61 sothat an accurate touch input of the touch sensor 612 that operates in anelectrostatic capacity manner is performed.

The front panel 61 may have a size greater than that of the plateopening 511 and be supported by the inner frame 52. That is, when thetransparent display assembly 60 is assembled and mounted from the rearside, a circumferential portion of the front panel 61 may be supportedby the rear surface of the inner frame 52.

In detail, a front protrusion 613 that further protrudes outward thanthe rear panel may be disposed on the front panel 61. The frontprotrusion 613 may have a length greater than that of the rear panel 65in all directions. Also, the front panel 61 defining the front surfaceof the transparent display assembly 60 may further extend outward fromthe plate opening 511 and then be stably fixed and mounted on the innerframe 52 due to characteristics of the transparent display assembly 60mounted on at the rear side of the outer plate 51.

Thus, when the transparent display assembly 60 is mounted, each of theextending ends of the front panel 61, i.e., the front protrusion 613 maybe supported by the inner frame 52, and thus, the transparent displayassembly 60 may be stably maintained in the mounted state without beingseparated.

A bezel 611 may be disposed on a circumference of the rear surface ofthe front panel 61. The bezel 611 may be printed with a black color andhave a predetermined width so that the outer spacer 67 and the firstspacer 63 are covered without being exposed to the outside.

A touch sensor 612 may be disposed on an inner area of the bezel 611.The touch sensor 612 may be formed on the rear surface of the frontpanel 61 in a printing manner and be configured to detect user's touchmanipulation of the front panel 61. Alternatively, the touch sensor 612may be formed in various manners such as a film adhesion manner, ratherthan the printing manner, so that the user touches the front panel 61 toperform the touch input.

A touch cable 601 connected to the touch sensor 612 may be disposed onthe upper end of the front panel 61. The touch cable 601 may be providedas a flexible film type cable such as a flexible flat cable (FFC) or aflexible print cable or flexible print circuit board (FPC). A printedcircuit may be printed on the touch cable 601 to constitute at least aportion of a touch PCB 603. Also, the touch cable 601 may be connectedto the touch PCB 603 that will be described below.

The display 62 may be disposed on the rear surface of the front panel61. The display 62 may be provided as an LCD module for outputting ascreen. Also, the display 62 may be transparent so that the user seesthe inside through the display 62 when the screen is not outputted.

A source board 621 may be disposed on one end of both left and rightsides of the display 62. The source board 621 may be configured tooutput a screen through the display 62 and provided as one assembly withthe display 62. Also, a portion of the source board 621 may include theflexible film type cable structure and extend upward along a sidesurface of the transparent display assembly 60 in the bent state.

Also, the source board 621 may have a width less than a thickness of thetransparent display assembly 60 and be bent while the transparentdisplay assembly 60 is assembled. Here, a position at which the sourceboard 621 is disposed may be defined between the inside of the outerspacer 67 and the first spacer 63 and come into contact with an innersurface of the outer spacer 67 in the bent state.

Also, the source board 621 may be connected to a display cable 605. Thedisplay cable 605 may be connected to a T-CON board 623 at an upperportion of the sub door 50.

In detail, when the source board 621 is disposed on the rear surface ofthe display 62, the source board 621 may be exposed to the outsidethrough the see-through part 21 due to the characteristics of thedisplay 62 that is transparent. Also, when the source board 621 has astructure that protrudes laterally, the sub door 50 may increase insize.

Thus, the source board 621 may be disposed on an end of acircumferential side of the display 62 and bent to come into contactwith the inner surface of the outer spacer 67 inside the outer spacer67. Also, the source board 621 may have a size corresponding to that ofthe outer spacer 67 without getting out of a region of the outer spacer67 in a state of being closely attached to the outer spacer 67.

The source board 621 may be constituted by two upper and lower boards621 and respectively connected to the pair of display cables 605. Thedisplay cable 605 may have a flexible and flat structure like the touchcable 601 and also have a structure that is freely bendable.

The display cable 605 may extend along the circumferential surface ofthe transparent display assembly 60 and pass through a sealant 691defining the side surface of the transparent display assembly 60 toextend to the outside of the transparent display assembly 60.

Also, the display cable 605 may be bent to extend along thecircumferential surface of the transparent display assembly 60, i.e., bebent so that an end thereof extends upward from the transparent displayassembly 60. Thus, the display cable 605 may be coupled to the T-CONboard 602 at the upper side of the sub door 50.

Both ends of the display 62 may be supported by the first spacer 63. Thefirst spacer 63 may have a rod or stick shape extending from an upperend to the lower end of the display 62 and be provided in a pair on bothleft and right sides to support both left and right ends of the display62. The first spacer 63 may be made of an aluminum material and maintaina preset distance between the display 62 and the light guide plate 64.

The light guide plate 64 may be disposed at a rear side of the display,supported by the pair of first spacers 63 disposed at both left andright sides, and disposed to be spaced a predetermined distance from thedisplay 62. There is a difference in depth feeling of the screenoutputted from the display 62 according to the position of the lightguide plate 64.

Thus, the light guide plate 64 may be disposed further forward than anintermediate point between the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65 sothat the screen outputted by the display 62 is felt closer to the frontpanel 61. As a result, a height of the first spacer 63 may bedetermined.

The light guide plate 64 may diffuse or scatter light emitted from thedisplay light 68 and be made of various materials. For example, thelight guide plate 64 may be made of a polymer material or formed byforming a pattern or attaching a film on a surface thereof. The lightguide plate 64 may illuminate the display 62 from the rear side of thedisplay 62 when the display light 68 is turned on. For this, the lightguide plate 64 may have a plate shape having a size equal to or somewhatgreater than that of the display 62. The display light 68 may bedisposed at a position corresponding to each of upper and lower ends ofthe light guide plate 64.

The rear panel 65 may be disposed at a rear side of the light guideplate 64. The rear panel 65 may define the rear surface of thetransparent display assembly 60 and have a size greater than that of thelight guide plate and less than that of the front panel 61. Also, therear panel 65 may have a size greater than that of the linear opening561 to cover the linear opening 561.

A circumference of the rear panel 65 may further protrude outward fromthe outer spacer 67 to provide a rear panel protrusion 651. The rearpanel protrusion 651 may be seated on the door liner 56 when thetransparent display assembly 60 is mounted and provide a space in whicha foaming solution is filled when the insulation material 531 is moldedin the sub door 50.

The insulation coating layer 652 for the thermal insulation may bedisposed on the surface of the glass layer 651 to thermally insulate therear panel 65. The insulation coating layer 652 may transmit visiblelight to allow user to see the inside of the refrigerator and reflectthe radiant heat irradiated to the rear panel 65 to block heat transfer.

The insulation coating layer 652 may be disposed on the front surface ofthe rear panel 65, i.e., a surface facing the light guide plate 64. Theinsulation coating layer 652 may be manufactured through metal oxidecoating or attachment of a film made of tin oxide (SnO₂) by using achemical vapor deposition (CVD) process using tin oxide (SnO₂). Theinsulation coating layer 652 may be disposed on at least one surface ofthe rear panel 65, and if necessary, disposed on both side surfaces ofthe rear panel 65.

As described above, since the insulation coating layer 652 is disposedon the rear panel 54, the rear panel 65 may prevent cool air within therefrigerator 1 from being transferred to the outside through thetransparent display assembly 60, thereby more effectively insulating theinside of the refrigerator 1 from the outside of the refrigerator 1.

Also, the same panel as the rear panel 65 may be further disposedbetween the light guide plate 64 and the rear panel 65, and thus, amultilayered insulation coating layer 652 may be provided. As describedabove, when the plurality of insulation coating layers 652 are provided,the thermal insulation performance may be more improved. Although theplurality of panels equal to the rear panel disposed on the insulationcoating layer are provided to improve the thermal insulationperformance, the adequate number of panels may be provided within limitscapable of maintaining the total thickness of the sub door 50.

The insulation coating layer 652 may not be provided on the light guideplate 64 and the front panel 61 except for the rear panel 65. When theinsulation coating layer 652 is disposed on the light guide plate 64,the insulation coating layer 652 may affect illumination of uniformlight to the display 62. When the insulation coating layer 652 isdisposed on the front panel 61, malfunction of the touch sensor 612 mayoccur.

Particularly, the touch sensor 612 for detecting the touch manipulationof the user in the electrostatic capacity manner may be attached to thefront panel 61. Thus, when the metal oxide made of tin oxide (SnO₂) isdisposed on the front panel 61, the touch sensor 612 may not accuratelydetect a variation in electrostatic capacity, and thus, the malfunctionin touch manipulation may occur.

Thus, the insulation coating layer 652 may not be disposed on the frontpanel 61, but disposed on only the rear panel 65 except for the frontpanel 61 and the light guide plate 64 to black heat transfer through thetransparent display assembly 60.

A second spacer or second inner spacer 66 may be disposed between therear panel 65 and the light guide plate 64. The second spacer 66 mayhave a rectangular frame shape disposed along a circumference of thelight guide plate 64 and adhere to the light guide plate 64 and the rearpanel 64 to maintain a predetermined distance between the light guideplate 64 and the rear panel 65.

Although the spacers 63, 66, and 67 have structures different from eachother in this embodiment, the spacers 63, 66, and 67 may maintain adistance between the adjacent panels 61 and 65 and the light guide plate64 and have various shapes such as a shape in which the moistureabsorbent is accommodated into a shape such as a rod.

The distance between the front panel 61 and the light guide plate 64 maybe maintained in fixed distance so as to output the screen of thedisplay 62. Also, the distance between the light guide plate 64 and therear panel 65 may be determined according to a thickness of the sub door50 or the total thickness of the transparent display assembly 60. Thatis, the second spacer 66 may be adjusted in thickness to determine thetotal thickness of the transparent display assembly 60 so as to bemounted to match a specification of the sub door 50.

The second spacer 66 may be made of an aluminum material, and a moistureabsorbent 661 may be filled into the second spacer 66. Also, a pluralityof punched holes 662 may be defined in an inner surface of the secondspacer 66. Thus, moisture in the space between the rear panel 65 and thelight guide plate 64 may be absorbed by the moisture absorbent 661 sothat the space is maintained in dry condition. Thus, an occurrence ofdew condensation or blurring of the inside due to moisture may beprevented.

The second spacer 66 may adhere to the light guide plate 64 and the rearpanel 65 by using an adhesion member (or seal) 663. Thus, a sealed closespace may be provided between the light guide plate 64 and the rearpanel 65. Also, an argon gas may be filled between the light guide plate64 and the rear panel 65, which are sealed by the second spacer 66, toprovide a first insulation layer 691.

The argon gas is a mono-atomic inert gas having a weight greater thanthat of air, and thus, convection does not likely occur. Thus, when theargon gas is filled into the first insulation layer 691, the heattransfer due to the convection may not occur between the light guideplate 64 and the rear panel 65, and thus, the overall thermal insulationperformance of the transparent display assembly 60 may be improved. Inaddition, an inert gas having the thermal insulation performance exceptfor the argon gas may be filled into the first insulation layer 691.

The rear panel 65 may come into contact with the door light 57. Thus, adistance between the display 62 and the door light 57 may be determinedaccording to the position of the rear panel 65. The door light 57 mayserve as an auxiliary backlight of the display 62 in the turn-on state.

In detail, a distance between the display 62 and the door light 58 mayrange from about 5 cm to about 15 cm. When the distance between thedisplay 62 and the door light 57 is less than about 5 cm, a shade mayoccur. When the distance between the display 62 and the door light 57exceeds about 5 cm, the door light may not serve as the backlight. Thus,to maintain the distance between the display 62 and the door light 57,the rear panel 65 may also be maintained to be spaced a predetermineddistance from the display 62, and thus, the width of the second spacer66 may be determined.

A gap between the light guide plate 64 and the rear panel 65 may besealed by the second spacer 66. Thus, a space between the second spacer66 and the light guide plate 64 may become to a vacuum state, or aninsulative gas such as argon may be injected for the thermal insulationto more improve the thermal insulation performance.

In the state in which the rear panel 65 adheres to the second spacer 66,an outer end of the rear panel 65 may further extend outward from thesecond spacer 66. Also, the outer spacer 67 may be mounted on the rearpanel 65 so that the rear panel 65 and the front panel 61 are fixed toeach other.

The outer spacer 67 may connect the rear surface of the front panel 61to the front surface of the rear panel 65 and also define thecircumferential surface of the transparent display assembly 60. Also, aspace in which the display light 68 is mounted may be provided in aninner surface of the outer spacer 67.

The outer spacer 67 may have a rectangular frame shape. Also, the outerspacer 67 may have a size in which the light guide plate 64 and thefirst and second spacers 63 and 66 are accommodated.

The first spacer 63 disposed inside the outer spacer 67 may have upperand lower ends, which come into contact with the outer spacer 67, butmay not be completely sealed due to the simple contact structurethereof. Thus, a space between the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65,which is spaced by the first spacer 63, may not have a sealed structure.

However, the outer spacer 67 may be disposed between the front panel 61and the rear panel 65 to seal the space between the front panel 61 andthe rear panel 65. Although the first spacer 63 does not seal the spacebetween the front panel 61 and the light guide plate 64 inside the outerspacer 67, the space between the front panel 64 and the rear panel 65inside the outer spacer 67 in addition to the space between the frontpanel 61 and the light guide plate 64, in which the first spacer 63 isaccommodated therebetween, may be sealed by the outer spacer 67. Thus,the argon gas may be filled into the space between the front panel 61and the light guide plate 64, and a second insulation layer may beprovided to more improve the thermal insulation performance of thetransparent display assembly 60.

In detail, the outer spacer 67 may define a circumference of an outerportion of the transparent display assembly 60 and also have aconnection structure that is capable of allowing the front panel 61 tobe maintained at a certain distance.

The space between the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65, i.e., theinner space of the outer spacer may be completely sealed by the couplingof the outer spacer 67. Also, the inside of the outer spacer 67 may bemore sealed by the sealant 691 applied to the circumference of the outerspacer 67.

The display 62 and the light guide plate 64 may be spaced apart fromeach other in a front and rear direction within the inside of the spacethat is sealed by the outer spacer 67. The first and second spacers 63and 66 for maintaining the distance of the light guide plate 64 may bealso provided in the inner space of the outer spacer 67.

An additional insulation panel may be further provided in the outerspacer 67, or a multilayered glass structure may be provided in theouter spacer 67. All of the above-described constituents may be providedin the space defined by the outer spacer 67.

That is, the overall outer appearance of the transparent displayassembly 60 may be defined by the front panel 61, the rear panel 65, andthe outer spacer 67, and all of the remaining constituents may beprovided in the outer spacer 67. Thus, the sealing may be performed onlybetween the outer spacer 67, the front panel 61, and the rear panel 65to completely seal the multilayered panel structure.

Particularly, even though a plate-shaped structure such as the lightguide plate 64 is further provided in the outer spacer 67, when only theouter spacer 67 adheres to the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65, thesealed structure of the transparent display assembly 60 may be achieved.The sealed structure may maintain a minimal sealing point even in themultilayered structure due to the plurality of panel including the lightguide plate 64.

Thus, introduction of external air into the transparent display assembly60 or the dew condensation in the transparent display assembly 60 due tointroduction of moisture may be minimized. Also, when the inside of theouter spacer 67 becomes in a vacuum state, or a gas for the thermalinsulation is injected, the insulation layer may be provided in thewhole multilayered structure within the transparent display assembly 60to more improve the thermal insulation performance.

The transparent display assembly 60 may be disposed in the sub door 50so that the inside of the refrigerator is seen, and the screen isoutputted, and also, the thermal insulation structure may be achieved inthe multilayered panel structure at the minimum sealing point to securethe thermal insulation performance.

Also, the display light 68 may be mounted on each of the upper and lowerends of the outer spacer 67. The light guide plate 64 may be disposedbetween the display lights 68 disposed on the upper and lower ends ofthe outer spacer 67.

Thus, light emitted through the display light 68 may be directed to anend of the light guide plate 64 and then travel along the light guideplate 64 so that the entire surface of the light guide plate 64 emitslight.

The display lights 68 disposed on the inner upper and lower ends of thetransparent display assembly 60 may be connected to a display lightcable 606. The display light cable 606 may have a flexible and flatshape like the touch cable 601 and the display cable 605.

The display light cable 606 may be connected to the display light 68that is mounted inside the outer spacer 67 to extend to the outside ofthe transparent display assembly 60 through the sealant 691.

Also, the display light cable 606 may extend along the circumference ofthe transparent display 62 so that the display light cable 606 is notexposed through the transparent display 62. Also, the display lightcable 606 may extend upward in a state of being closely attached to therear surface of the rear panel 65. As occasion demands, the displaylight cable 606 may be bent in the state of adhering to the rear surfaceof the rear panel 65 and then may be connected to a docking PCB 604disposed on the upper portion of the sub door 50.

Here, since the display light cable 606 extends in the state of beingclosely attached to the circumference of the rear panel 65, when the subdoor 50 is viewed from the outside, the display light cable 606 may becovered by the bezel 611 and thus may not be exposed through thetransparent display assembly 60.

The sealant 691 may be applied to the circumference of the outer spacer67. The sealant 691 may be applied to form the circumferential surfaceof the transparent display assembly 60. That is, the sealant 691 maycompletely seal a circumferential surface between the front panel 61 andthe rear panel 65.

The sealant 691 may seal the transparent display assembly 60 to preventair from being introduced into the transparent display assembly 60 andbe made of a polysulfide (that is called a thiokol) material. Asoccasion demands, the sealant 691 may be made of a different sealantmaterial such as silicon or urethane so that the sealant 691 comes intodirect contact with the foaming solution that is injected to mold theinsulation material 531.

The sealant 691 may maintain the coupling of the outer spacer 67, thefront panel 61, and the rear panel 65 and completely seal the connectedportions of the components to prevent water or moisture from beingintroduced. Also, the sealant 691 may be a portion, which comes intodirectly contact with the foaming solution when the insulation material531 is molded, and protect the circumference of the transparent displayassembly 60.

Also, the sealant 691 may allow cables 601, 605, and 606 connected tothe touch sensor 612, the display panel 62, and the display light 68within the transparent display assembly 60 to be accessibletherethrough. The sealant 691 may cover outer surfaces of the cables601, 605, and 606 to prevent water or moisture from being introducedthrough spaces through which the cables 601, 605, and 606 are accessiblewhen the cables 601, 605, and 606 extend through the circumferentialsurface of the transparent display assembly 60.

Thus, the inside of the outer spacer 67 may be completely sealed by thesealant 670, and the argon gas for the thermal insulation injected intothe outer spacer 67 may be prevented from leaking.

FIG. 11 is a partial perspective view illustrating a state in which thePCB is disposed on the upper portion of the transparent displayassembly. Also, FIG. 12 is a partial perspective view illustrating astructure in which the display cable is disposed on the transparentdisplay assembly. FIG. 13 is a partial perspective view illustrating astructure in which the display light is disposed on the transparentdisplay assembly.

As illustrated in the drawings, a plurality of PCBs 602, 603, and 604for driving the transparent display assembly 60 may be disposed on anupper side of the sub door 50, i.e., a space between an upper end of thetransparent display assembly 60 and the upper cap deco.

The PCBs mounted on the PCB mounting part 545 may include the T-CONboard 602, the touch PCB 603, and the docking PCB 604. The T-CON board602 may include a display cable 605 for driving the display 62. Thetouch PCB 603 may process a touch input signal of the touch sensor 612and include a touch cable 601 connected to the touch sensor 612. Thedocking PCB 604 may connect the touch PCB 603 and/or the T-CON board602, and the control unit 14 on the cabinet 10 to the wire typeconnection cable 607.

The cables 601, 605, and 606 connecting the plurality of cables 602,603, and 604 to each other may be provided as the flexible film type FFCor FPC. Thus, the touch cable 601, the display cable 605, and thedisplay light cable 606 may occupy a large space within the sub door 50and be disposed to be closely attached to each other along the outsideof the transparent display assembly 60. Also, the connection structurewith the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 may also be simply provided and may notbe exposed to the outside through the see-through part 21. In addition,when the insulation material 531 is foamed to be molded in the sub door50, the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 may not interfere with the insulationmaterial 531.

In more detail, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the touch cable 601 mayextend upward from an upper end of the touch sensor 612 and be connectedto the touch PCB 603 disposed at an upper side thereof. The touch cable601 may have a flat shape, and the extending end of the touch cable 601may be bent to be connected to the touch PCB 603.

The display cable 605 may be connected to the source board 621 to extendupward. Then, the display cable 605 may extend along the circumferenceof the side surface of the transparent display assembly 60 and then beconnected to the T-CON board 602.

The display cable 605 may be connected to the source board 621 insidethe transparent display assembly 60. As illustrated in FIG. 12, thedisplay cable 605 may be guided to the outside of the outer spacer 67through the space between the rear panel 65 and the outer spacer 67.

In detail, a cable connection part 605 a is provided on the displaycable 605. The cable connection part 605 a may be introduced into thetransparent display assembly 60 through the space defined by the rearpanel 65 and the end of the outer spacer 67 and then be connected to thesource board 621 in the inner space of the transparent display 62.

A double-sided tape or an adhesion member (or seal) 671 such as anadhesive, which adheres to the rear panel 65, may be disposed on an endof the outer spacer 67. The cable connection part 605 a may pass throughthe adhesion member 671 and be guided to the outside of the outer spacer67.

Also, a sealant 670 may be applied to an outer surface of the outerspacer 67 to cover a circumference of the cable connection part 605 a,thereby preventing the argon gas from leaking to the outside through thecable connection part 605 a and preventing moisture from beingintroduced.

Also, the display cable 605 may be bent at the outside of the outerspacer 67 to extend upward along the circumference of the outer spacer67 coated with the sealant 670 and then be connected to the T-CON board602.

The display light cable 606 may be connected to the display light 68disposed on each of the upper and lower portions of the transparentdisplay assembly 60 to extend upward along the outer circumference ofthe transparent display assembly 60 and then be connected to the dockingPCB 604.

In detail, as illustrated in FIG. 12, the display light cable 606 may beintroduced into the transparent display assembly 60 through the spacebetween the rear panel 65 and the outer spacer 67 and then be connectedto the display light 68 disposed inside the outer spacer 67.

The display light cable 606 may pass through the adhesion member 671 forallowing the outer spacer 67 and the rear panel 65 to adhere to eachother and then be exposed to the outside. Then, the display light cable606 may be bent to face the docking PCB 604 and extend along acircumference of the rear panel 65.

The docking PCB 604 may be connected to an end of the door light cable609 that extends from the door light 57. The door light 57 may beprovided as a separate part with respect to the transparent displayassembly 60 and mounted on the door liner 56.

The docking PCB 604 may be connected to at least one of the touch PCB603 and the T-CON board 602 and also be connected to the control unit 14via the sub door 50 by the wire type connection cable 607.

Thus, the plurality of flat cables 601, 605, and 606 may be connected tothe docking PCB 604, and the less number of connection cables 607connected to the docking PCB 604 may be guided to the outside of the subdoor 50 and then be connected to the control unit 14. Thus, the controlunit 14 and the electric components of the transparent display assembly60 may communicate with each other by the connection cable 607 and thecables 601, 605, and 606 to transmit information for operation.

The transparent display assembly 60 has an insulation structure toprevent heat transfer between the inside of the refrigerator and theoutside from occurring. Hereinafter, this structure will be described inmore detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 14 is a partial cutaway perspective view of the transparent displayassembly. Also, FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line15-15′ of FIG. 8. Also, FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view taken alongline 16-16′ of FIG. 8.

As illustrated in the drawings, the transparent display assembly 60includes a first insulation layer 691 sealed between the rear panel 65and the light guide plate 64 by the second spacer 66 and a secondinsulation layer 692 between the rear panel 65 and the front panel 61 bythe outer spacer 67.

In detail, the outer spacer 67 may be disposed on the rear surface ofthe front panel 61, which has the largest area, and the display 62, thefirst spacer 63, the light guide plate 64, and the second spacer 66 maybe sequentially disposed inside the outer spacer 67. Also, the rearpanel 65 may adhere to the rear surface of the outer spacer 67 to definean outer appearance of the transparent display assembly 60.

The touch sensor 612 is disposed on the rear surface of the front panel61, and the display 62 is disposed on a rear surface of the touch sensor612. The display 62 may be disposed in an inner region of the outerspacer 67, and the light guide plate 64 may be disposed at a positionthat is spaced a predetermined distance from the display 62 by the firstspacer 63.

The first spacer 63 may be disposed on each of both left and right sidesof the display 62 to adhere the rear surface of the front panel 61 bythe adhesion member 632. Also, both ends of the light guide plate 64 maybe supported by a support pad 631 (or seals) disposed on the rearsurface of the first spacer 63. Also, the upper and lower ends of thelight guide plate 64, which are not supported by the first spacer 63,may be supported by a light guide plate support part (or light guideplate support extension) 675 extending from the outer spacer 67. Inaddition, the support pad 631 may adhere to the light guide platesupport part 675 to support the upper and lower ends of the light guideplate 64. That is, the first spacer 63 and the light guide plate supportpart 675 may be disposed at the same height to support both left andright ends and upper and lower ends of the front surface of the lightguide plate 64.

Here, since the light guide plate 64 may be contracted by heat due tothe operation of the display light 68, the end of the circumference ofthe light guide plate 64 may not be completely fixed, and ends of thefirst spacer 63 and the light guide plate support part 675 may bedisposed adjacent to each other without being fixed and coupled to eachother. Due to this structure, the first spacer 63 may not be completelysealed, and air or a gas may flow between the inside and the outside ofthe first spacer 63.

Also, in a state in which the light guide plate 64 is supported by thefirst spacer 63 and the light guide plate support part 675, the displaylight 68 may be disposed at positions corresponding to the upper andlower ends of the light guide plate 64. The display light 68 may beconfigured so that a plurality of light emitting devices (e.g., lightemitting diodes or LEDs) 682 are disposed on the substrate 681. Here,the LEDs 682 may be continuously disposed along the end of the lightguide plate 64.

Here, the outer spacer 67 may include a display light mounting part (ordisplay light mounting wall) 674 so that the LEDs 682 are disposed onthe end of the light guide plate 64. A substrate accommodation part (orsubstrate accommodation region) 676 into which the substrate 681 isinserted may be recessed to be defined in a portion at which the displaylight mounting part 674 and the light guide plate support part 675 areconnected to each other. Thus, the LEDs 682 may emit light to the end ofthe light guide plate 64 at a position corresponding to the end of thelight guide plate 64.

The first spacer 63, the second spacer 66, and the light guide plate 64may be spaced apart from the inner surface of the outer spacer 67 todefine a space therebetween. Thus, the source board 621 may be disposedinside the outer spacer 67. That is, the source board 621 may bedisposed in a space defined by the inside the outer spacer 67 and thefirst spacer 63 and also be disposed to extend in a directionperpendicularly crossing the front panel 61.

An end of the source board 621 may extend up to a position adjacent tothe rear surface of the front panel 61, and one side of the source board621 may be connected to the display 62 through a space between the frontpanel 61 and the first spacer 63.

Here, a space may be defined between the front panel 61 and the firstspacer 63. In detail, a wire constituting a portion of the source board621, which passes between the first spacer 63 and the front panel 61,may exist. Due to the uneven structure of the wire, the first spacer 63and the front panel 61 may not be completely attached to each other, andthus, a gap may be generated therebetween. That is, a sealed space maynot be provided in the space between the front panel 61 and the lightguide plate 64, which is defined by the first spacer 63.

Also, the source board 621 disposed between the outer spacer 67 and thefirst spacer 63 may be connected to the display cable 605. The sourceboard 621 may be connected to the T-CON board 602 by the display cable605.

A second spacer 66 may be disposed on the rear surface of the lightguide plate 64. The second spacer 66 may have both ends that are openedand have a hollow polygonal tube shape in section. Also, the secondspacer 66 may be provided as tube members 661 that define upper/lowerand left/right sides thereof. A corner connection member 662 defining anedge of the second spacer 66 may be coupled to an opened end of each ofthe tube members 661. The ends of the tube members 661 may be connectedto cross each other by the corner connection member 662, therebyproviding the second spacer 66.

The second spacer 66 may have one end that adheres to the rear panel 65by the adhesion member 663. Also, the second spacer may have the otherend that comes into contact with the light guide plate 64 by the supportpad 631. Since electronic components are not disposed between the lightguide plate 64 and the rear panel 65, the cables 605 and 606 are notaccessed between the light guide plate 64 and the rear panel 65, andthus, a completely sealed space may be provided between the light guideplate 64 and the rear panel 65.

Thus, a first insulation layer 691 may be disposed in an inner region ofthe second spacer 66. An argon gas may be filled into the firstinsulation layer to prevent heat from being transferred to the outside.

The argon gas to be injected into the first insulation layer 691 may beinjected through an injection hole 664 defined in the second spacer 66in the state in which the rear panel 65 and the light guide plate 64adhere to the second spacer 66. After the argon gas is injected, therest components of the transparent display assembly 60 may be coupled tothe second spacer 66 in the state in which the light guide plate 64 isseated on the second spacer 66.

Although a sealed space is not provided in the inner region of the firstspacer 63, the inner space defined by the outer spacer 67 may be sealed.That is, a space between the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65, whichadhere to the outer spacer 67, may be sealed to provide the secondinsulation layer 692, and the inner region of the first spacer 63 mayalso be provided in the second insulation layer 692.

Thus, when the argon gas is injected into the second insulation layer692, the argon gas may be injected up to the inside of the first spacer63 to which the flow of the gas and air is enabled. As a result, thesecond insulation layer 692 into which the argon gas is injected may bedefined in the whole space including the space between the front panel61 and the light guide plate 64. Thus, the transparent display assembly60 may be more improved in thermal insulation.

The first insulation layer 691 and the second insulation layer 692 maycommunicate with each other. In this case, when the argon gas isinjected into the outer spacer 67, the argon gas may be injected intoall of the first and second insulation layers 691 and 692.

FIG. 17 is a rear view illustrating a state in which the rear panel ofthe transparent display assembly is removed. Also, FIG. 18 is a viewillustrating a state in which a gas is injected into the transparentdisplay assembly.

As illustrated in the drawings, the transparent display assembly 60 maybe disposed on the front and rear surfaces by the front panel 61 and therear panel and have a circumferential surface defined by the outerspacer 67. Also, the display 62, the light guide plate 64, the firstspacer 63, and the second spacer 66 may be disposed inside the outerspacer 67.

Also, to assemble the transparent display assembly 60, the touch sensor612 and the display 62 may be sequentially disposed on the front panel61, and the outer spacer 67 and the first spacer 63 may adhere to thefront panel 61 by using the adhesion member 632. The display 62 may befixed by the first spacer 63, and the light guide plate 64 may be seatedon the rear surface of the first spacer 63 and the outer spacer 67. Inthis state, the second spacer 66 may support the rear surface of thelight guide plate 64, and finally, the rear panel 65 may adhere to thesecond spacer 66 and the outer spacer 67 by using the adhesion members663 and 671.

The touch cable 601 connected to an upper end of the touch sensor 612extends upward. Also, the display cable 605 connected to the sourceboard 621 may be guided to the outside through the gap between the outerspacer 67 and the rear panel 65. Also, the display light cable 606connected to the display light 68 may also be guided to the outsidethrough the gap between the outer spacer 67 and the rear panel 65. Here,each of the touch cable 601, the display cable 605, and the displaylight cable 606 may have a flat film shape and thus be easily guided tothe outside through the gap between the rear panel 65 and the outerspacer 67.

Also, in the state in which the transparent display assembly 60 isassembled, the argon gas may be injected through injection holes 664 and676, which are defined in a right upper end (when viewed in FIG. 17) ofthe outer spacer 67 and the second spacer 66. Also, when the gas isinjected, air in the first and second insulation layers 691 and 692 maybe discharged through discharge holes 665 and 677, which are defined ina left lower end (when viewed in FIG. 17) of the outer spacer 67 and thesecond spacer 66. Thus, the first and second insulation layers 691 and692 may be completely filled. Also, to improve efficiency in injectionof the gas, the injection holes 664 and 676 and the discharge holes 665and 677 may be provided in plurality.

The argon gas may be injected to provide the insulation space in all ofthe first and second injection layers 691 and 692. In detail, the argongas injected into the transparent display assembly 60 through theinjection hole 664 may be filled into the space between the front panel61 and the light guide plate 64 through the edge of the first spacer 63,i.e., the end of the first spacer 63 and the light guide plate supportpart 675 inside the outer spacer 67.

The argon gas may be filled into the whole inner space of the outerspacer 67. Here, the argon gas may also be injected into the secondspacer 66 through the injection hole 664 defined in the second spacer66. Thus, the argon gas may be filled up to the light guide plate 64 andthe rear panel 65. As a result, the argon gas may be filled into all ofthe first and second insulation layers 691 and 692. Thus, thetransparent display assembly 60 may be improved in whole insulationeffect.

After the argon gas is injected into the transparent display assembly60, the sealant 670 is applied to the circumference of the outer spacer67. The sealant 670 may cover the injection hole 676 defined in thetransparent display assembly 60 and also cover the portions throughwhich the touch cable 601, the display cable 605, and the display lightcable 606, which are guided to the outside through the circumference ofthe transparent display assembly 60, pass. Thus, the leakage of the gasinto the transparent display assembly 60 and the introduction of thewater and moisture into the transparent display assembly 60 may beprevented.

Hereinafter, turn-on/off states of the display light and the door lightwill be described in more detail with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

FIG. 19 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the main door and thesub door. Also, FIG. 20 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of themain door and the sub door. Also, FIG. 21 is a view illustrating a statein which the inside of the refrigerator is seen through the transparentdisplay assembly. Also, FIG. 22 is a view illustrating a state in whicha screen is outputted through the transparent display assembly.

As illustrated in the drawings, in a state in which a locking member 593of the opening device 59 is inserted into a latch hole 421, the sub door50 may be maintained in a closes state. In this state, the door light 57may be maintained in a turn-off state. An opened or closed state of thesub door 50 may be detected through a door switch that is separatelyprovided.

In the turn-off state of the door light 57, as illustrated in FIG. 1,the rear space of the sub door 50 may be dark, and thus, the inside ofthe refrigerator 1 may not be seen through the see-through part 21.Thus, in the closed state of the sub door 50, if separate manipulationis not performed, the door light 57 may be maintained in the turn-offstate, and the inside of the refrigerator 1 may not be seen through thesee-through part 21.

In this state, the user may manipulate the front panel 61 to turn on thedoor light 57. When the door light 57 is turned on, light emitted from alighting module may be emitted to positions of both rear left and rightsides of the rear panel 65, which face each other.

The door light 57 may extend from the upper end to the lower end of therear panel 65. That is, the light emitted by the door light 57 mayilluminate the entire rear region of the rear panel 65 from both theleft and right sides of the rear panel 65.

Here, when the display light 68 is in the turn-on state together withthe door light 57, light may be emitted upward and downward by thedisplay light 68, and thus the light may be emitted from left and rightsides by the door light 57. As a result, the light may be emitted to thesee-through part 21 in all directions to maximally brighten up an areaof the see-through part 21.

The door light 57 may emit light in directions facing each other in astate of being close to the rear panel 65. The light emitted by the doorlight 57 may brighten up an inner case of the accommodation case 43 andalso brighten up the front region over the rear panel 65. Thus, asillustrated in FIG. 20, the door light 57 may serve as a lighting forbrightening up the inner space of the refrigerator 1, which is seenthrough the see-through part 21 and also serve as an auxiliary backlightfor allow the display 62 to be more clearly displayed.

That is, in a state in which a screen is being outputted through thedisplay 62, the inner space of the refrigerator 1, i.e., the rear spaceof the sub door 50 may be selectively seen through the see-through part21. To allow the rear space of the sub door 50 to be seen through thesee-through part 21, the door light 57 may be turned on.

A turn on/off combination of the display light 68 and the door light 57may be variously realized according to a degree of seeing of the insideof the accommodation case 43 through the see-through part 21.

Also, when the user manipulates the front panel 61 disposed on the frontsurface of the refrigerator 1, the display light 68 may be turned on toturn on the display 62. Thus, the transparent display assembly 60 mayoutput a screen as illustrated in FIG. 23. Here, the manipulation of thefront panel 61 may be inputted as one of a specific position, the touchnumber, or a pattern. As occasion demands, a separate physical button orsensor may be used to detect the user's manipulation.

A screen for displaying a state of the refrigerator 1 and manipulatingmay be outputted on the display 62. Here, various screens forinformation with respect to accommodated foods may be outputted by usingInternet, image output external input devices, or the like.

In detail, the display light 69 disposed on each of the upper and lowerends of the light guide plate 64 may be turned on together with thedisplay 62 by the user's manipulation. The light guide plate 64 mayirregularly reflect and diffuse light of the display light 68 by theturn-on of the display light 68 to emit light having generally uniformbrightness to the front display 62.

Also, light may be emitted to the display 62 from the rear side of thedisplay 62 by the light guide plate 64, and simultaneously, a screenbased on inputted image information may be outputted on the display 62.Thus, the user may confirm the clearly outputted screen through thesee-through part 21.

In addition to the foregoing embodiment, a refrigerator according tovarious embodiments may be exemplified.

According to a second embodiment, an insulation panel is furtherprovided between a light guide plate and a rear panel, and a fourthinsulation layer and a third insulation layer are respectively providedat a rear side and a front side of the insulation panel. Thus, thesecond embodiment is the same as the foregoing embodiment except for aninsulation panel within a transparent display assembly and the third andfourth spacers for mounting the insulation panel. Also, in the currentembodiment, the same constituent as those of the abovementionedembodiments will be denoted by the same reference numeral, and itsdetailed description will be omitted.

FIG. 23 is an exploded perspective view of the transparent displayassembly according to the second embodiment.

As illustrated in the drawings, a transparent display assembly 60according to a second embodiment may have an outer appearance defined bya front panel 61, and a touch sensor 612 is disposed on a rear surfaceof the front panel 61. A touch cable 601 may extend upward on an upperend of the touch sensor 612.

Also, a display 62 is disposed on a rear surface of the touch sensor612, and a first spacer 63 is disposed on each of both left and rightsides of the display 62. The first spacer 63 may support both ends of alight guide plate 64, and the light guide plate 64 and the display 62may be maintained to be spaced a predetermined distance from each other.

A source board 621 laterally protrudes from one end of the display 62 topass between the first spacer 63 and the front panel 61 and protrudeoutward. The source board 621 may be bent between the first spacer 63and the outer spacer 67 and disposed perpendicular to the front panel 61and then connected to a display cable 605.

The outer spacer 67 is disposed outside the first spacer 63. Also, theouter spacer 67 may support upper and lower ends of the light guideplate 64. Also, a display light 68 mounted on each of upper and lowerends of and inner surface of the outer spacer 67 may emit light to upperand lower ends of the light guide plate 64. A display light cable 606 isconnected to the display light 68.

A third spacer 71 having a rectangular frame shape is disposed on a rearsurface of the light guide plate 64. An insulation panel 72 may be fixedto be maintained at a predetermined distance with respect to the lightguide plate 64 by the spacer 71. In detail, the third spacer 71 may havethe same structure as the second spacer 66 according to the foregoingembodiment except for a thickness of the third spacer 71. That is, sincean insulation panel 72 has to be added while maintaining the totalthickness of the transparent display assembly 60, the third spacer 71may have a thickness less than that of the second spacer 66.

Also, the insulation panel 72 may have the same structure as the rearpanel 65 to provide a glass layer 721 and an insulation coating layer722. Thus, the transparent display assembly 60 according to the secondembodiment may be improved in thermal insulation performance. A glasslayer 651 and an insulation coating layer 652 may be further disposed onthe rear panel to more improve the thermal insulation performance.

A fourth spacer 73 may be disposed on a rear surface of the insulationpanel 72. The rear panel 65 may adhere to a rear surface of the fourthspacer 73 to maintain a preset distance between the insulation panel 72and the rear panel 65. The fourth spacer 73 may be adequately designedaccording to a thickness of the third spacer 71. That is, the fourthspacer 73 may have a thickness at which the rear panel 65 adheres to thefourth spacer 73 and the rear surface of the outer spacer 67 when therear panel 65 is mounted.

The rear panel 65 may adhere to the outer spacer 67 and then be fixedwhile being maintained at a predetermined distance with respect to thefront panel 61. Also, the display 62, the first spacer 63, the lightguide plate 64, the third spacer 71, the insulation panel 72, and thefourth spacer 73 may be successively disposed in an inner region of theouter spacer 67 between the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65.

Also, a third insulation layer 693 may be provided by the third spacer71 between the light guide plate 64 and the insulation panel 72. Also, afourth insulation layer 694 may be provided by the insulation panel 72and the fourth spacer 73.

Also, the second insulation layer 692 may be provided in the outerspacer 67 to substantially insulate the entire area of the transparentdisplay assembly 60, thereby significantly improving the thermalinsulation performance of the transparent display assembly 60. If thethermal insulation performance of the transparent display assembly 60 issatisfied, one of the third and fourth insulation layers 693 and 694 maybe omitted.

FIG. 24 is a transverse partial cutaway perspective view of thetransparent display assembly. Also, FIG. 25 is a longitudinal partialcutaway perspective view of the transparent display assembly.

As illustrated in the drawings, the transparent display assembly 60includes a third insulation layer 693 sealed between the light guideplate 64 and the insulation panel 72 by the third spacer 71 and a fourthinsulation layer 694 sealed between the insulation panel 72 and the rearpanel 65 by the fourth spacer 73. Also, the second insulation layer 692may be provided between the rear panel 65 and the front panel 61 by theouter spacer 67.

In detail, the outer spacer 67 may be disposed on the rear surface ofthe front panel 61, which has the largest area, and the display 62, thefirst spacer 63, the light guide plate 64, the third spacer 66, theinsulation panel 72, and the fourth spacer 73 may be sequentiallydisposed inside the outer spacer 67. Also, the rear panel 65 may adhereto the rear surface of the outer spacer 67 to define an outer appearanceof the transparent display assembly 60.

The touch sensor 612 is disposed on the rear surface of the front panel61, and the display 62 is disposed on a rear surface of the touch sensor612. The light guide plate 64 may be disposed at a position that isspaced a predetermined distance from the display 62 by the first spacer63 and the outer spacer 67.

Here, since the light guide plate 64 may be contracted by heat due tothe operation of the display light 68, the end of the circumference ofthe light guide plate 64 may not be completely fixed, and ends of thefirst spacer 63 and the light guide plate support part 675 may bedisposed adjacent to each other without being fixed and coupled to eachother. Due to this structure, the first spacer 63 may not be completelysealed, and air or a gas may flow between the inside and the outside ofthe first spacer 63.

The display light 68 may be disposed on the outer spacer 67, whichcorresponds to the upper and lower ends of the light guide plate 64.Also, the LED 682 mounted on the substrate 681 of the display light 68may emit light to the end of the light guide plate 64 at a positioncorresponding to the end of the light guide plate 64.

The first spacer 63, the light guide plate 64, the third spacer 71, theinsulation panel 72, and the fourth spacer 73 may be spaced apart froman inner surface of the outer spacer 67 to define a space therebetween.Also, the source board 621 may be disposed inside the outer spacer 67.Since the source board 621 is disposed, a sealed space may not beprovided in the space between the front panel 61 and the light guideplate 64, which is defined by the first spacer 63.

The third spacer 71 may be disposed on the rear surface of the lightguide plate 64, and the insulation panel 72 may adhere to the thirdspacer by using the adhesion member 711 to provide the third insulationlayer 693. Also, the fourth spacer 73 may be disposed on the rearsurface of the insulation panel 72, and the fourth spacer 73 and theouter spacer 67 may adhere to the rear panel 65 by using the adhesionmembers 731 and 671 to provide the fourth insulation layer 694 that isin a sealed state.

Also, the outer spacer 67, the front panel 61, and the rear panel 65 mayadhere to each other to provide the second insulation layer 692, whichis in a sealed state, in the inside of the outer spacer 67 including thespace between the front panel 61 and the light guide plate 64.

Hereinafter, a process of assembling the transparent display assemblyhaving the above-described structure and a process of forming theinsulation layer will be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

FIGS. 26A and 26B are views illustrating a process of forming theinsulation layer of the transparent display assembly.

To assemble the transparent display assembly 60, the touch sensor 612 isformed on the front panel 61, and the display 62, the first spacer 63,and the outer spacer 67 are mounted on the front panel 61.

Also, the fourth spacer 73 may be mounted on the rear panel 65, and theinsulation panel 72 may be attached to the fourth spacer 73 to form thefourth insulation layer 694 that is in a sealed state. Also, the thirdspacer 71 is mounted on the insulation panel 72, and the light guideplate 64 is seated on the third spacer 71 to form the third insulationlayer 693 that is in a sealed state.

As illustrated in FIG. 26A, the front panel 61 on which the display 62,the first spacer 63, and the outer spacer 67 are mounted may beseparated from the rear panel 65 on which the fourth spacer 73, theinsulation panel 72, the third spacer 71, and the light guide plate 64are mounted.

In this state, the argon gas is injected into the third insulation layer693 and the fourth insulation layer 694, which are maintained in theseated state. In the third insulation layer 693 and the fourthinsulation layer 694 are in the sealed state, the gas may be injectedinto the third spacer 71 and the fourth spacer 73 through injectionholes defined in one side of the third and fourth spacers 71 and 73 andbe discharged through discharge holes defined in the other side of thethird and fourth spacers 71 and 73.

When the argon gas is completely injected, the injection hole and thedischarge hole may be covered by the sealant or other coveringconstituents to prevent the argon gas from leaking. Alternatively, thethird insulation layer 693 and the fourth insulation layer 694 may beconfigured so that the argon gas is injected, and the air is dischargedthrough the injection hole and the discharge hole defined between theadhesion members 731 except for the third spacer 71 and the fourthspacer 73. That is, the gas may be injected into the third and fourthinsulation layers 693 and 694 through various methods.

The transparent display assembly 60 that is in the module state may becoupled to the front panel 61 in the state in which the gas is injectedinto the third insulation layer 693 and the fourth insulation layer 694as illustrated in FIG. 26A and then become the state of FIG. 26B. Thatis, constituents of the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65, which arepartially assembled and produced at different positions, may be coupledto each other to form the transparent display assembly 60.

Here, the light guide plate 64 may be seated on and supported by thefirst spacer 63, and an end of the outer spacer 67 may adhere to therear panel 65 by the adhesion member 671. The transparent displayassembly 60 may be completely assembled as a whole due to theabove-described structure.

Also, in the transparent display assembly 60 is completely assembled,the argon gas may be injected through the injection hole 676 of theouter spacer 67. Here, the air of the second insulation layer 692 may bedischarged to the outside through a discharge hole (not shown). That is,the argon gas may be filled between the front panel 61 and the lightguide plate 64 to form the second insulation layer 692 that is sealed bythe outer spacer 67.

In addition to the foregoing embodiment, a refrigerator according tovarious embodiments may be exemplified.

A refrigerator according to a third embodiment may have a structure inwhich injection holes are defined in an outer spacer and a cornerconnection member constituting the spacer to fill a gas for thermalinsulation within a transparent display assembly. Thus, the thirdembodiment is the same as the foregoing embodiments except forconstituents of the spacer. Also, in the current embodiment, the sameconstituent as those of the abovementioned embodiments will be denotedby the same reference numeral, and its detailed description will beomitted. In the current embodiment, constituents (not shown) are thesame as those of the abovementioned embodiments will be denoted by thesame reference numeral, and their detailed description will be omitted.

FIG. 27 is a view illustrating a process of forming an insulation layerof a transparent display assembly according to a third embodiment.

As illustrated in the drawings, a transparent display assembly 60according to the third embodiment may have an outer appearance definedby a front panel 61, and a touch sensor 612 and a display 62 are mountedon a rear surface of the front panel 61. Also, a light guide plate maybe supported by a first spacer 63. Also, an outer spacer 67 may bemounted outside the first spacer 63.

A third spacer 71 may be disposed on a rear surface of the light guideplate 64, and an insulation panel 72 may be disposed on a rear surfaceof the third spacer 71. Also, a fourth spacer 73 is disposed on a rearsurface of the insulation panel 72, and the rear panel 65 adheres to thefourth spacer 73 and the outer spacer 67 to define a rear surface of thetransparent display assembly 60.

Although the third and fourth spacers 71 and 73 and the insulation panel72 are disposed at a rear side of the light guide plate 64 in thisembodiment, the second spacer 66 instead of the third spacer 71 and thefourth spacer 73 may be disposed at the rear side of the light guideplate 64 like the first embodiment.

Also, in the transparent display assembly 60, all of a display 62, thefirst spacer 63, the light guide plate 64, the third spacer 71, aninsulation panel 72, and the fourth spacer may be disposed in an innerregion of the outer spacer 67, and the inner region of the outer spacer67 between the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65 may be completelysealed.

The fourth spacer 73 may include four tube members 731 definingupper/lower and left/right sides and a corner member 732 connecting theadjacent tube members to each other. Also, a moisture absorbent 661 maybe filled into the tube members 731. Thus, the moisture absorbent 661may absorb moisture through a punched hole opened to the inside of thefourth insulation layer 694 to always dry the fourth insulation layer694.

The corner connection member 732 may be injection-molded with astructure that is capable of being easily inserted into and fixed to thetube members 731 and made of a plastic material. A connection memberinjection hole 732 a may be defined in an edge of the corner connectionmember 732. The connection member injection hole 732 a may pass throughthe outside of the fourth spacer 73 to the inside of the fourth spacer73 to communicate with the fourth insulation layer 694.

Also, an injection hole 679 is penetrated through one side of an outerportion of the outer spacer 67. The injection hole 679 may be defined inone side so that the injection hole 679 does not interfere with a sourceboard 621 or a display light 68 and also be defined adjacent to theconnection member injection hole 732 a.

Thus, when a gas for thermal insulation is injected through theinjection hole 679 in a state in which the transparent display assembly60 is assembled, the gas may be filled into a second insulation layer692 inside the outer spacer 67, and also, the gas may be injected into afourth insulation layer 694 through the connection member injection hole732 a.

Although not shown, a discharge hole (not shown) may be further definedin one side of the outer spacer 67 and the fourth spacer 73 in adirection opposite to the injection hole 679 and the connection memberinjection hole 732 a. Thus, since air is discharged through thedischarge hole, the gas may be more smoothly injected.

Also, although not shown, the third spacer 71 may have the samestructure as the fourth spacer 73. Thus, the gas introduced through theinjection hole 679 may be injected through the connection memberinjection hole 732 a of the third spacer 71 and then filled into thethird insulation layer 693.

In the state in which the gas is completely injected into thetransparent display assembly 60, a sealant 670 may be applied to acircumference of the outer spacer 67 to cover the injection hole 679 andthe discharge hole, thereby preventing the gas within the transparentdisplay assembly 60 from leaking.

In addition to the foregoing embodiment, a refrigerator according tovarious embodiments may be exemplified.

A refrigerator according to a fourth embodiment may have a structure inwhich an entire front surface of a door is defined by a front surface ofa transparent display assembly.

Also, a portion of constituents according to the fourth embodiment isthe same as those according to the foregoing embodiments. Thus, the samepart will be designated by the same reference numeral, and detaileddescriptions thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 28 is a perspective view of a door according to a fourthembodiment. Also, FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional view taken along line29-29′ of FIG. 28.

As illustrated in the drawings, a door 80 according to this embodimentmay have an outer appearance of the entire front surface and a portionof a rear surface, which are defined by a transparent display assembly60 and also have an outer appearance of a circumference and a portion ofthe rear surface, which are defined by a door liner 81. Thus, thetransparent display assembly 60 may be fixedly mounted on the door liner81.

In detail, the transparent display assembly 60 may have the samestructure as that according to the first embodiment. That is, thetransparent display assembly 60 may include a front panel 61, a rearpanel 65, a light guide plate 64, a display panel 62, a touch sensor612, a first spacer 63, a second spacer 66, and an outer spacer 67.

Also, injection holes 676 and 664 may be defined in the outer spacer 67and the second spacer 66, respectively. A gas for thermal insulation maybe injected through an injection hole 679. The gas is injected throughthe injection hole 676 from the outside of the outer spacer 67. The gasintroduced into the outer spacer 67 is injected into the secondinsulation layer 692 between the front panel 61 and the light guideplate 64. Here, an inner space of the outer spacer 67 may be sealed andcommunicate between the light guide plate 64, which is supported by thefirst spacer 63, and the front panel 61 so that the gas for the thermalinsulation is introduced.

Also, the gas introduced into the outer spacer 67 may be introduced intothe second insulation layer 692 between the light guide plate 64 and therear panel 65 through the injection hole 664 of the second spacer 66,which is disposed inside the outer spacer 67.

Thus, the gas for the thermal insulation may be filled into a hinge 85and the second insulation layer within the transparent display assembly60 to satisfy the thermal insulation performance of the transparentdisplay assembly 60.

Although not shown, a discharge hole (not shown) may be defined in eachof the outer spacer 67 and the second spacer 66 like the firstembodiment. Thus, when the gas is injected into the first insulationlayer 691 and the second insulation layer 692, air may be discharged sothat the injection of the gas is more effectively performed.

Also, an insulation coating layer 652 may be further provided on therear panel 65 to more improve the thermal insulation of the transparentdisplay assembly 60 by using the insulation coating layer 652.

Also, the front panel 61 may define the entire front surface of the door80, and the circumference of the front panel 61 may further protrudefrom the outer spacer 67 and the rear panel 65. An opaque bezel may beprinted on a front protrusion 613 to prevent the other constituentcoming into contact with the front protrusion 613 from being exposedthrough the front surface.

A door liner 81 defining a circumferential surface and a rear surface ofthe door 80 may be disposed on a rear surface of the front protrusion613. The door liner 81 may include a front part 811 adhering to thecircumference of the front panel 61, a side part 812 defining acircumference of a side surface of the door 80, a rear part 813 defininga circumference of the rear surface of the door 80, and a linearprotrusion 814 on which the door light 57 is mounted. The front part811, the side part 812, the rear part 813, and the linear protrusion 814may be molded into one constituent as a whole, and as necessary, may beprovided in the form in which at least two constituents are coupled toeach other.

The front part 811 may come into contact with the circumference of therear surface of the front panel 61 and be coupled by an adhesion membersuch as a double-sided tape or an adhesive. The side part 812 extendsbackward from an outer end of the front part 811 to extend up to therear part 813, thereby defining a substantial outer appearance of thedoor 80, which is exposed to the outside. Also, a thickness of the door80 may be determined according to a width of the side part 812. Thus,the side part 812 may extend to protrude to a rear side of the rearsurface of the transparent display assembly 60 to provide a space inwhich the transparent display assembly 60 is mounted.

The rear part 813 extends from an end of the side part 812 to define therear surface of the door 80. The rear part 813 may extend by apredetermined length, and the extending end may support an outer end ofthe rear panel 65. An adhesion member such as a double-sided tape or anadhesive may be disposed on the rear part 813 to adhere to thetransparent display assembly 60.

Thus, the transparent display assembly 60 may have a structure in whichthe front panel 61 is supported by the front part 811, and the rearpanel 65 is supported by the rear part 813 and then fixed to the door80. That is, the transparent display assembly 60 may have a structure inwhich the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65 are inserted through theopened front surface of the door liner 81 and supported by the doorliner 81 and then fixedly mounted.

A gasket 73 may be fixedly mounted on the rear surface 813. When thedoor 80 is closed, the gasket 73 may seal the circumference of the rearsurface of the door 80 to prevent cool air within the refrigerator fromleaking.

The rear part 813 may have a stepped one side to come into contact withan outer end of the rear panel 65 and thereby to guide the rear panel 65so that the rear panel is mounted at an accurate position, andsimultaneously, to prevent a foaming solution injected into the doorliner 81 from leaking.

The transparent display assembly 60 may be fixedly mounted on the doorliner 81, and the circumferential surface of the transparent displayassembly 60 may seal a space defined by the front part 811, the sidepart 812, and the rear part 813. Particularly, the inside of thetransparent display assembly 60 may be completely sealed by the sealant691 applied to the outside of the transparent display assembly 60. Thus,the foaming solution may be injected into the door liner without leakingto the outside to provide an insulation material 82. Also, theinsulation material 82 may come into direct contact with thecircumference of the transparent display assembly 60 to more fix thetransparent display assembly 60.

The linear protrusion 814 may extend backward from the end of the rearpart 813 and be bent inward to define a space, in which the door light57 is mounted, in each of both sides of the rear surface of the door 80.The door light 57 may illuminate light in directions facing each otherto brighten up the rear side of the transparent display assembly 60.

An upper hinge 84 and a lower hinge 85 may be disposed on upper andlower ends of the circumferential surface of the door 80 so that thedoor 80 is rotatably mounted on a cabinet of the refrigerator. Also,although not shown, a handle for rotational manipulation of the door 80may be further disposed on one side of the door 80.

The following effects may be expected in the refrigerator according tothe proposed embodiments.

In the refrigerator according to the embodiments, the see-through partthat sees the accommodation space may be provided in the door. Thesee-through part may include the transparent display and be selectivelytransparent or opaque according to the turn-on/off of the door light andthe display light. Thus, the user may confirm the accommodation spacethrough the see-through part by the user's manipulation without openingthe door to improve the user's convenience and reduce the powerconsumption.

Also, in the see-through part, the display may operate according to theuser's manipulation to display various screens and thereby to providevarious pieces of information for the user's convenience and allow theuser to input the manipulation thereof, thereby improving the user'sconvenience.

Also, the cables connected to the electric components of the transparentdisplay assembly may have the flexible structure as the flat type cable.Thus, the cables may easily access between the transparent displayassembly having the structure in which the plurality of panels arelaminated, and the sealed state may be maintained.

Also, the cables may be bent and thus closely attached to thecircumference of the transparent display assembly. Thus, the door mayhave the compact structure, and the interface with the insulationmaterial may be minimized.

Also, the PCB for controlling the electric components of the transparentdisplay assembly may be disposed at the upper, lower, or left/rightsides of the transparent display assembly. In addition, since the cablesconnected to the PCB are also disposed along the circumference of thetransparent display assembly, the PCB or the cables may not be exposedto the outside through the transparent display assembly. That is, theinside of the refrigerator may be seen through the transparent displayassembly that is capable of outputting the screen. Here, theinterference with the PCB or the cables may be prevented.

Also, the cables connected to the electric components of the transparentdisplay assembly may be accessible through the circumferential surfaceof the transparent display. Particularly, in case of the source board,the cables may pass between the first spacer and the front panel, andthus, the sealing at the portion through which the cables pass may beimpossible. Also, although the first spacer having the portion on whichthe display light is disposed and the portion supporting the light guideplate has a structure in which the light guide plate is not sealed, theouter spacer may be disposed outside the first spacer to seal the gapbetween the front panel and the rear panel. In addition, the injectionhole for injecting the gas into the outer spacer may be provided toinject the gas for the insulation into the outer spacer to form theinsulation layer between the front panel to which the display isattached and the light guide plate.

Also, at least one or more panels may be further provided at the rearside of the light guide plate, and the distance between the light guideplate and the panel may be maintained. Also, the injection hole may beprovided in the spacer to inject the insulation gas introduced throughthe injection hole of the outer spacer into the spaces between theplurality of panels through the spacer, thereby significantly improvingthe insulation performance of the transparent display assembly.

Also, the sealant may be applied to the circumference of the outerspacer to completely seal the injection hole on the outer spacer and theportion of the outer spacer, through which the plurality of film-typecables guided to the outside through the circumferential surface pass.Thus, the gas for the insulation in the transparent display assembly maybe prevented from leaking, and the insulation performance may bemaintained.

Also, when the insulation gas is injected through the outer spacer, thespacer provided in the outer spacer may be constituted by the pluralityof tube members and the corner connection member connecting the tubemembers to each other and made of the plastic material. Also, theconnection member injection hole may be defined in the corner connectionmember so that the gas is introduced into the insulation layer. Thus,the structure for injecting the gas may be simply realized withoutprocessing the tube members.

Also, the plurality of insulation layers in which the insulation gas isfilled may be provided in the transparent display assembly to improvethe insulation performance of the transparent display assembly.

Also, in the rear panel or the rear panel and the insulation panel ofthe transparent panels constituting the transparent display assemblyexcept for the front panel, to which the touch sensor for the touchoperation is attached, and the light guide plate, the insulation coatinglayer formed by applying the metal oxide to the surface of the glasslayer may be provided to block and reflect the radiant heat, therebymore improving the insulation performance of the transparent displayassembly.

Also, the insulation coating layer may not be provided to the frontpanel, to which the touch sensor is attached, to secure the touchrecognition performance. In addition, the insulation layer in which thegas is filled may be provided inside the transparent display assembly tosecure the insulation performance.

Also, the transparent display assembly may have the sealed space thereinby the outer spacer connecting the front panel to the rear panel. Also,the display and the light guide plate may be accommodated in the innerspace of the outer spacer to provide the multilayered panel structure.

As described above, in the multilayered panel structure, themultilayered inner space may be sealed by the sealing structure due tothe outer spacer may be naturally realized. In addition, although themultilayered panel structure is further provided in the inner space ofthe outer spacer, the entire sealing of the transparent display assemblymay be achieved by only the sealing of the outer spacer to improve thethermal insulation performance and the assemblability.

Although embodiments have been described with reference to a number ofillustrative embodiments thereof, it should be understood that numerousother modifications and embodiments can be devised by those skilled inthe art that will fall within the spirit and scope of the principles ofthis disclosure. More particularly, various variations and modificationsare possible in the component parts and/or arrangements of the subjectcombination arrangement within the scope of the disclosure, the drawingsand the appended claims. In addition to variations and modifications inthe component parts and/or arrangements, alternative uses will also beapparent to those skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:
 1. A refrigerator comprising: a cabinet; and a doorconfigured to open and close at least a portion of the cabinet, the doorincluding a display assembly; wherein the display assembly includes: afront panel defining at least a portion of a front surface of the door;a rear panel spaced apart from the front panel; a light guide platepositioned between the front panel and the rear panel, the light guideplate including a front surface, a rear surface and a side surface; alight guide plate support extension configured to support the lightguide plate and having a substrate accommodation region; a substrateprovided at the substrate accommodation region; a plurality of lightemitting devices (LEDs) that are mounted on the substrate such thatlight emitting surfaces of LEDs face the side surface of the light guideplate; an inner spacer provided between the light guide plate and therear panel and having an injection hole through which gas is injectedinto a space defined by the inner spacer, the light guide plate, and therear panel; a pad contacting the inner spacer and the light guide plate;and a seal contacting the inner spacer and the rear panel.
 2. Therefrigerator of claim 1, further comprising: an outer spacer providedbetween the front panel and the rear panel, the outer spacer beingconfigured to space the rear panel apart from the front panel, whereinthe outer spacer includes a display light mounting wall on which thesubstrate is mounted.
 3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein thesubstrate accommodation region includes a recess at an intersection ofthe display light mounting wall and the light guide plate supportextension, and a section of the substrate is inserted into the recess ofthe substrate accommodation region.
 4. The refrigerator of claim 1,further comprising another seal contacting the light guide plate supportextension and the front panel.
 5. The refrigerator of claim 1, furthercomprising another pad contacting the light guide plate and the lightguide plate support extension.
 6. The refrigerator of claim 1, whereinthe gas injected through injection hole flows into the space defined bythe inner spacer, the light guide plate, and the rear panel to form afirst insulation layer.
 7. The refrigerator of claim 1, furthercomprising: an additional inner spacer provided between the front paneland the light guide plate, wherein the gas flows into another spacedefined by the front panel, the additional spacer, and the light guideplate to form a second insulation layer.
 8. The refrigerator of claim 7,further comprising: an outer spacer provided between the front panel andthe rear panel, the outer spacer being configured to space the rearpanel apart from the front panel; and an additional injection holedefined in the outer spacer and through which the gas is injected intothe second insulation layer.
 9. The refrigerator of claim 7, furthercomprising another seal contacting the additional inner spacer and thefront panel.
 10. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the light guideplate support extension is positioned adjacent to and not fixed to thelight guide plate to allow the light guide plate to contract or expanddue to heat from the plurality of LEDs, and wherein the pad is providedbetween the light guide plate and the inner spacer.
 11. The refrigeratorof claim 1, wherein the inner spacer extends along the rear surface ofthe light guide plate and includes a pair of side surfaces that extendbetween the light guide plate and the rear plate, and wherein theinjection hole is formed at one or more of the pair of side surfaces ofthe inner spacer.
 12. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the doorincludes an outer plate having an opening in which the display assemblyis positioned and a door liner mounted to be spaced apart from the outerplate, and wherein the refrigerator further comprises an insulationmaterial provided around at least a section of the display assembly. 13.The refrigerator of claim 12, further comprising: an outer spacerprovided between the front panel and the rear panel, the outer spacerbeing configured to space the rear panel apart from the front panel; anda display cable, a first section of the display cable being provided ata peripheral surface of the outer spacer, and a second section of thedisplay cable passing between the outer spacer and the insulationmaterial.
 14. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the door includes adoor liner having an opening into which the display assembly isinserted, and wherein a width of the front panel in a horizontaldirection parallel to the front surface of the door is greater than thatof the rear panel.
 15. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the rearpanel is configured to form at least a portion of a rear surface of thedoor.
 16. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the refrigeratorcomprises a plurality of doors, and the display assembly is provided atone of the plurality of doors.
 17. The refrigerator of claim 1, whereinthe door includes a main door having an opening and a sub doorconfigured to open and close the opening, and wherein the displayassembly is provided at the sub door.
 18. The refrigerator of claim 1,wherein the seal includes at least one of a tape or an adhesive.
 19. Arefrigerator comprising: a cabinet; and a door configured to open andclose at least a portion of the cabinet, the door including a displayassembly, wherein the display assembly includes: a front panel definingat least a portion of a front surface of the door; a rear panel spacedapart from the front panel; a light guide plate positioned between thefront panel and the rear panel, the light guide plate including a frontsurface, a rear surface and a side surface; a light guide plate supportextension configured to support the light guide plate and having asubstrate accommodation region; a substrate provided in the substrateaccommodation region; and a plurality of light emitting diodes mountedon the substrate and positioned to emit light toward the side surface ofthe light guide plate, wherein the substrate accommodation region has anopening which extends away from the rear panel so that a section of thesubstrate is inserted into the substrate accommodation region throughthe opening in a direction toward the front panel.
 20. The refrigeratorof claim 19, further comprising: an outer spacer provided between thefront panel and the rear panel, the outer spacer being configured tospace the rear panel apart from the front panel, wherein the outerspacer includes a display light mounting wall on which the substrate ismounted.
 21. The refrigerator of claim 20, wherein the substrate ismounted on an inner surface of the display light mounting wall, theinner surface of the display light mounting facing the side surface ofthe light guide plate, and wherein light emitting surfaces of theplurality of LEDs are spaced apart from the side surface of the lightguide plate.
 22. The refrigerator of claim 20, wherein the opening isformed between the light guide plate support extension and the displaylight mounting wall.
 23. The refrigerator of claim 20, wherein thesubstrate accommodation region is recessed at an intersection of thedisplay light mounting wall and the light guide plate support extensionto form the opening.
 24. The refrigerator of claim 20, wherein the lightguide plate support extension and the display light mounting wall areintegrally formed.
 25. The refrigerator of claim 19, wherein lightemitting surfaces of the plurality of LEDs face the side surface of thelight guide plate, and a gap is defined between the side surface of thelight guide plate and the emitting surfaces of the plurality of LEDs.26. The refrigerator of claim 19, wherein the plurality of LEDs arespaced apart from the side surface of the light guide plate.
 27. Therefrigerator of claim 19, further comprising: an inner spacer providedbetween the light guide plate and the rear panel and having an injectionhole through which gas is injected into a space defined by the innerspacer, the light guide plate, and the rear panel; a pad contacting theinner spacer and the light guide plate; and a seal contacting the innerspacer and the rear panel.
 28. The refrigerator of claim 19, wherein thedoor includes an outer plate having an opening in which the displayassembly is positioned and a door liner that is spaced apart from theouter plate, and wherein the refrigerator further comprises aninsulation material provided around at least a section of the displayassembly.
 29. The refrigerator of claim 28, further comprising: an outerspacer provided between the front panel and the rear panel, the outerspacer being configured to space the rear panel apart from the frontpanel; and a display cable, a first section of the display cable beingprovided at a peripheral surface of the outer spacer, and a secondsection of the display cable passing between the outer spacer and theinsulation material.
 30. The refrigerator of claim 19, wherein the doorincludes a door liner and having opening into which the display assemblyis inserted, and wherein a width of the front panel in a horizontaldirection parallel to the front surface of the door is greater than thatof the rear panel.
 31. The refrigerator of claim 19, wherein the rearpanel is configured to form at least a portion of a rear surface of thedoor.
 32. The refrigerator of claim 19, wherein the refrigeratorcomprises a plurality of doors, and wherein the display assembly isprovided at one of the plurality of doors.
 33. The refrigerator of claim19, wherein the door includes a main door having an opening and a subdoor configured to open and close the opening, and wherein the displayassembly is provided at the sub door.